Last Friday, October 11, a full-page ad appeared in most national papers. Printed on a graphic of a paper coffee cup were these words:

Sign the Come Together Petition 
To our leaders in Washington, D.C. now’s the time to come together to:

1. Reopen our government to serve the people
2. Pay our debts on time to avoid another financial crisis.
3. Pass a bipartisan, long-term budget deal by the end of the year.

At the bottom of the page, it read:

Starting today and continuing through this weekend, you’ll bind this petition in Starbucks stores across America.

Come in to add your name we’ll ensure it gets to Washington, so our voices can be heard.

According to a recent message from Starbucks, “Nearly 1.5 million of you (and counting) have shown your support for the petition. As promised, today we delivered the petition to the White House and Congress.”

This direct plea from Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is yet another example of Americans, in general, and a CEO in particular, using the power of a simple message to break the gridlock in Washington. Today, on the eve of the country defaulting on its promises to pay all its bills on time, it’s a message that we can all stand behind.

And I would add one more:

Debate, YES! But let’s have genuine, bipartisan agreement onALL issues standing before the Congress in a way that demonstrates a return to common sense compromise.